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Brexit and You: Northern Ireland
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The UK left the European Union on 31 January 2020 after both sides concluded a Withdrawal Agreement to facilitate an orderly departure.
The Withdrawal agreement provides for a transition period until the end of 2020. The transition period is intended to give time for national administrations, businesses and citizens to get ready for the changes that will definitely arise on 1 January 2021 as a result of the UK's decision to leave the EU.
The Withdrawal Agreement also includes a Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland, which means that many of the changes that will apply to trade between Ireland and the UK will not apply between Ireland and Northern Ireland. The Common Travel Area between Ireland and the UK, including the associated rights and entitlements, will also continue.
During the transition period, EU rules and regulations will continue to apply to and in respect of the UK, particularly the rules pertaining to the EU’s Single Market and Customs Union.
The EU and the UK are currently conducting negotiations on a future partnership agreement.
Regardless of the outcome of these negotiations, substantial and enduring change will arise on 1 January 2021. It is important that we all understand the changes that will arise on 1 January 2021, and the necessary steps we now need to take as a result.
Whether you're a concerned citizen or wondering how the end of the transition period may affect your business, the aim of this government website is to help you prepare.
Many of these concerns will be shared across this island and the factual information available on this website will be relevant no matter where you live. We are working to keep this website up-to-date.
Check back regularly, as information will be regularly updated.
The Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland is an integral part of the Withdrawal Agreement. It is a comprehensive and legally operative solution that addresses the challenges of Brexit on the island of Ireland. Regardless of the outcome of the future partnership negotiations between the EU and the UK, the Protocol will apply from the end of the transition period.
The Protocol protects the Good Friday Agreement, North/South cooperation and the all island economy. It avoids a hard border on the island of Ireland, while preserving the integrity of the EU Single Market and Ireland’s place in it. It also includes commitments to ensure no diminution of rights, safeguards and equality of opportunity, as set out in the Good Friday Agreement, and confirms that people in Northern Ireland will continue to enjoy their rights as EU citizens.
The Protocol also provides a legal framework for the continuation of the Single Electricity Market on the island of Ireland, and reaffirms the commitment of the EU and UK to the PEACE PLUS programme. The maintenance of the Common Travel Area (CTA) by Ireland and the UK is also recognised. The CTA is a long-standing arrangement between Ireland and the UK, which enables Irish and British citizens to travel and reside in either jurisdiction without restriction and provides for associated rights and entitlements in both jurisdictions, including access to employment, healthcare, education, social benefits and the right to vote in certain elections. Further information on the Common Travel Area is provided here .
The detail of a number of operational aspects of the Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland will be clarified during the transition period by the EU and the UK, working together, in the Joint Committee established by the Withdrawal Agreement.
Ireland regrets the UK’s decision to leave the EU, although we respect it. While we will no longer meet in Brussels, the relationship between Ireland and the UK will remain a vital one between close neighbours, trading partners, and co-guarantors of the Good Friday Agreement. We are committed to finding new ways to engage and will carry out a strategic review of British-Irish relations in 2020/21.
In a lot of the information on practical issues like living, working, studying and accessing services like health and education, including cross-border on the island of Ireland, you’ll hear about the Common Travel Area (CTA).
The Common Travel Area is a long-standing arrangement between the UK and Ireland which means Irish citizens can move freely to live, work, and study in the UK on the same basis as British citizens, and vice versa. Irish and British citizens also enjoy associated rights and entitlements including access to employment, healthcare, education, social benefits, and the right to vote in certain elections.
After the end of the transition period, living, working and travelling in Ireland or the UK, isn’t going to change a lot because of the Common Travel Area and the rights it gives to Irish and British citizens.
The Common Travel Area is not reliant on membership of the EU, and dates back to before either the UK or Ireland were EU members.
The Government, together with the UK Government, has already undertaken extensive work to maintain the CTA arrangements for all citizens of Ireland or the UK. This work will continue. Structures are in place to oversee the operation of the CTA and address any issues arising.
For example, on 8 May 2019, the Irish and British Governments entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) reaffirming the joint commitment of both Governments to the Common Travel Area in all Brexit scenarios, and to maintaining the associated rights and privileges of Irish and British citizens under this long-standing reciprocal arrangement.
Irish citizens in the UK and British citizens in Ireland are not required to take any action to protect their status, or the rights associated with the CTA. Irish citizens resident in the UK do not need to register or take any action under the UK Government's Settled Status scheme. They will continue to hold their CTA rights, which are not reliant on EU membership. However, as EU citizens, Irish citizens may apply to the UK Government scheme, if they so wish. Similarly, British citizens resident in Ireland will not need to apply for a permanent residence document from the Irish Government, although they may choose to do so. Further information is available on the Department of Foreign Affairs website.
From 1 January 2021, regardless of the outcome of the ongoing negotiations between the EU and the UK, the UK will no longer be part of the EU’s Single Market and Customs Union. This means any business that moves goods from, to, or through the UK will be subject to a range of new customs formalities and other regulatory requirements, including SPS controls in the case of food products.
However, it is important to note that these changes will not apply with respect to trade in goods between Ireland and Northern Ireland, where the Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland will apply from the end of the transition period, regardless of the outcome of the negotiations between the EU and the UK.
The Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland provides that Northern Ireland is legally part of the UK customs territory but subject to certain provisions of EU law. These EU law provisions are effectively those necessary to avoid a hard border on the island, and include the Union Customs Code and EU legislation across a range of areas necessary to protect the integrity and operation of the Single Market in goods. Under the Protocol, goods from Northern Ireland will have free and open access to the EU Single Market. Necessary checks and controls (including on SPS goods) will take place on goods entering Northern Ireland from the rest of the United Kingdom and other third countries.
The detail of how some aspects of the Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland will work in practice will be clarified during the transition period by the EU and the UK, working together, in the Joint Committee established by the Withdrawal Agreement.
After the transition period, EU law which supports the internal market for services will no longer apply in the UK, including Northern Ireland. This includes things like the Services Directive, which promotes shared high standards across the EU. There may also be implications for recognition of qualifications, legal services, and intellectual property, all of which help to support services trade.
For those trading on a cross-border basis, InterTrade Ireland’s Brexit Advisory Service provides a range of practical advice, support and information for business on Brexit related issues.
Irish and British citizens will continue to enjoy the right to travel freely throughout Ireland and the UK after the end of the Brexit transition period
Cross border bus and rail transport services will continue to be available.
Irish and British citizens will continue to enjoy the right to travel freely throughout Ireland and the UK in the same manner as before.
There is no requirement for Irish and British citizens to carry passports when travelling within the Common Travel Area .
However, it is the case that airline carriers in many instances require all passengers to have a passport in their possession before allowing them to board aircraft. This is not an immigration requirement.
Immigration requirements, as appropriate, will continue to apply to non-Irish and non-British citizens.
For journeys on the island of Ireland, British and Irish citizens do not require any travel documents when crossing the land border.
Non-EEA nationals should be in possession of a valid travel document and, if required, an Irish entry visa or transit visa for the State. Further information can be found on the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration website .
UK licences, including Northern Ireland licences, continue to be valid when driving in Ireland during the transition period.
After Transition
If you are resident in Ireland and hold a British or Northern Ireland driving licence, you should apply to exchange your licence for an Irish issued licence before the end of the transition period (31 December 2020).
When visiting Ireland from Northern Ireland, it will be possible to drive on a British or Northern Ireland-issued driving licence for up to one year provided the driving licence is current and valid.
Contact the National Driver Licence Service for more information.
Driving in Northern Ireland on an Irish licence: The UK Government advises that arrangements for EU licence holders who are visiting or living in the UK will not change after the UK leaves the EU. Therefore, visitors to Northern Ireland with driving licences from EU Member States, including Ireland, should continue to enjoy the same arrangements.
Drivers from Northern Ireland travelling across the border will not be required to carry an International Driving Permit.
At present, all motor vehicles from any EU country (including the UK) may travel within the EU without carrying special documentation to prove that they have insurance in the country they are visiting. This will change following the transition period.
Following the transition period, and in the event that no further arrangement is agreed, a certificate called a ‘Green Card’ which is issued by your UK insurer, and proves that the vehicle is insured, may be required for vehicles from the UK, including Northern Ireland, being driven in Ireland or other EU Member States.
This means that, following the transition period, UK and Northern Ireland registered vehicles may require a Green Card for cross-border journeys on the island of Ireland.
A Green Card is a document that proves you have motor insurance cover when driving in another jurisdiction.
At present, mobile users in the border region have certainty that they will not be charged additional roaming charges should their device automatically connect to a provider in the neighbouring jurisdiction.
After the transition period, mobile operators will no longer be legally required under EU law to offer roaming at no additional charge to customers travelling to/from the UK when they exit the EU.
This does not mean that mobile operators will necessarily apply new charges. The three main mobile providers here have indicated that there will be no changes to the current roaming arrangements for their customers. Either way, all operators must make customers well aware of any roaming charges they could incur. If you have any concerns, you should contact your provider directly.
UK mobile operators have indicated their intention not to reintroduce mobile roaming charges after the end of the transition period.
The Irish Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg) will continue to liaise with its UK counterpart (OfCom), including in relation to roaming issues arising from Brexit.
Many students on the island of Ireland, North and South, receive some or all of their education in the other jurisdiction. This is one of the rights and entitlements associated with the Common Travel Area that is enjoyed by students both North and South and which will continue in all circumstances.
Every day, children and young people cross the border to attend school in either jurisdiction. This will continue under the Common Travel Area following the departure of the UK from the EU.
After the UK leaves the EU, students from Northern Ireland will continue to be able to study in Ireland and vice versa.
Should you pursue your further and higher study in the UK, your fees will be set at the same level as citizens in the UK for the 2020/2021 academic year, and will continue on that basis for the duration of the programme for which you have registered. The Common Travel Area (CTA) means Ireland and the UK will take steps to ensure Irish and British citizens can continue to access further and higher education on the same fee basis into the future.
Applications: For those wanting to study in Ireland, the CAO and State Examinations Commission are working with their Northern Irish and British counterparts to ensure smooth continuity of the applications process. Further information will be provided as it becomes available.
Fees: Students from Northern Ireland will be eligible for the same fee structures as Irish students.
Student supports: After the UK leaves the EU, the usual SUSI student grant rules will continue to apply for both British and Irish students.
The Government intends to introduce legislation to ensure that these arrangements can continue to apply to eligible students studying in Northern Ireland, as well as the payment of SUSI grants to students from Northern Ireland studying in higher education institutions in the South.
Further education training and opportunities will continue to be available to students and trainees from Northern Ireland, and vice versa, under the Common Travel Area.
The EU’s Erasmus+ 2014-2020 programme provides funding for a range of international education and training projects, including student and staff mobility and exchanges, job shadowing, teaching assignments, and strategic partnerships between organisations.
The programme will continue to operate fully for all remaining EU Member States after the UK leaves the EU.
The precise details of UK participation in Union programmes, such as the Erasmus + programme, will be subject to the final outcome of the future partnership discussions.
The Political Declaration between the UK and the EU provides that the Parties will establish general principles, terms and conditions for the United Kingdom's participation in Union programmes, subject to the conditions set out in the corresponding Union instruments, in areas such as education, overseas development and external action, defence capabilities, civil protection and space.
The Government of Ireland continues to recognise the importance of continued access to the Erasmus+ programme for students and staff of relevant institutions in Northern Ireland, and will monitor developments on this throughout the discussions on the future relationship.
The Government will also introduce a scheme to allow for the continued participation in Erasmus+ mobilities for eligible students of higher education institutions in Northern Ireland, on the basis of temporary registration at Irish higher education institutions.
Professional qualifications are specific qualification requirements that a person needs to possess by law in order to access or pursue a regulated profession or to engage in regulated activities in a given country. Qualification requirements vary between professions and are covered within a series of EU Directives. Once the UK leaves the EU, new professional qualifications issued by UK bodies will no longer be automatically recognised in Ireland under EU law, and vice-versa. This may have implications for those working or seeking to work in an EU Member State on the basis of professional qualifications obtained in the UK. However, if you have already had these qualifications recognised by the relevant EU regulator before the end of the transition period, there will be no change and you can continue to practice anywhere in the EU.
The Government of Ireland has encouraged regulatory authorities in Ireland, some of whom operate on an all island basis, to engage with their counterparts in the UK in order to manage the process of continued recognition.
If you have a query about your professional qualification, you should contact the relevant regulatory body for your profession.
Please see the Studying section for further information on education and related matters.
After Brexit, if you are an Irish citizen living in Northern Ireland, or a British citizen living in Ireland, your social welfare rights and entitlements will not change when the transition period ends.
You will continue to be entitled to access social assistance schemes, including pensions and child benefit payments, in either jurisdiction just as before.
This also includes social insurance entitlements where British and Irish citizens living in Ireland maintain the right to benefit from social insurance contributions made when working in Northern Ireland or Britain, and to access social insurance payments if living in Northern Ireland or Great Britain and vice versa.
For more information on your rights and entitlements under the Common Travel Area, please see here .
Irish citizens resident in Britain, and British citizens resident in Ireland, have the right to vote in local and national parliamentary elections. This will continue to be the case after the end of the transition period.
For more information on your rights and entitlements under the Common Travel Area, please see here .
SEPA is the Single Euro Payments Area which enables payment transfers in euro between accounts in SEPA countries.
The UK Government has committed to keep its payment rules in line with SEPA. The end of the transition period should not affect transfers in euro moving between accounts in the UK and accounts in the EU.
Customers should contact their finance provider if they have any further queries.
During the transition period, existing arrangements for income tax and related payments will continue.
Both the Irish and British Governments are committed to maintaining the current healthcare arrangements under the Common Travel Area . Under the Common Travel Area, Irish citizens and British citizens who live in, work in, or visit the other State have the right to access healthcare there.
The Government is working to ensure that new arrangements will provide for continued access, to the greatest extent possible,to the health services between Ireland and the UK, including on the island of Ireland, which patients in both jurisdictions currently access.
For more information on healthcare arrangements after Brexit, please visit the Health and Brexit page .
Cross border health services (like the cardiology and cancer treatments in Altnagelvin Hospital and paediatric cardiology and maternity services in Dublin) are managed by service level agreements. These services and others like them will continue.
If you hold a European Health Insurance Card issued by the UK, this will remain valid until the end of the transition period.
The Government of Ireland continues to recognise the importance placed on continued access to the European Health Insurance Card entitlements by residents of Northern Ireland and will monitor developments on this throughout the discussions on the future relationship.
Preparations are continuing to ensure that a scheme will be in place to address any loss of access to EHIC Card entitlements by residents of Northern Ireland. This scheme will allow eligible residents of Northern Ireland to seek reimbursement from the Irish State for the cost of necessary healthcare while on a temporary stay in another EU/EEA Member State (excluding Ireland) or Switzerland, should it be required from 1 January 2021
UK withdrawal from the European Union has given rise to concerns for people living in Northern Ireland about what it might mean for their rights, citizenship and entitlements.
Throughout the negotiations, the Government of Ireland has prioritised the protection of the Good Friday Agreement in all its parts, including the rights and citizenship provisions which are central to it. This is reflected in the Withdrawal Agreement and in the Protocol on Ireland / Northern Ireland.
It is also important to note:
Irish citizens will continue to have EU citizenship wherever they live. They will continue to enjoy the right to travel and live and work anywhere in the EU and the right not to be discriminated against on the grounds of nationality. Irish citizens do not need to take any action to protect their EU citizenship.
Neither Irish citizens nor British citizens are required to take any action to protect their status and rights associated with the Common Travel Area.
In relation to the provisions on human rights, safeguards and equality of opportunity of the Good Friday Agreement, the UK Government has committed that these will be upheld in all circumstances.
This is reflected in the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland, which provides that the UK shall ensure that no diminution of rights, safeguards or equality of opportunity results from its withdrawal from the EU, including in the area of protection against discrimination. The Protocol also recognises that Irish citizens in Northern Ireland, by virtue of their EU citizenship, will continue to enjoy, exercise and have access to rights, opportunities and benefits.
The commitment of the Irish Government to the Good Friday Agreement, in all its parts, including North South Cooperation and the work of the North South Implementation Bodies, is unwavering and will not be affected by Brexit.
The Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland includes the maintenance of the necessary conditions for continued North-South cooperation, including in the areas of environment, health, agriculture, transport, education, tourism, energy, telecommunications, broadcasting, inland fisheries, justice and security, higher education and sport.
The Withdrawal Agreement maintains the Single Electricity Market.
Specifically the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland provides for the continuance of the Single Electricity Market on the island of Ireland. The Political Declaration calls for both parties to cooperate to support the delivery of cost efficient, clean and secure supplies of electricity and gas, based on competitive markets and non-discriminatory access to networks.
The Government is also working to increase interconnectivity with other EU Member States including through the Celtic Interconnector project for which substantial EU funding has been made available.
Ireland and the UK both have a common law system and share a Common Travel Area , which includes certain legal rights and entitlements. However, from the end of the transition period, EU law will no longer apply to or in respect of the UK.
Issues arising in matters of justice cooperation with the UK after the end of the the transition period will be dealt with in the context of discussions on the future relationship. between the EU and the UK.
Because of the Common Travel Area and the rights and entitlements it gives to Irish and British citizens, living, working and travelling on the island of Ireland, North and South, isn’t going to change a lot.
Immigration requirements, as appropriate, will continue to apply to non-Irish and non-British citizens. You can read more about the Common Travel Area here.
The precise details of UK participation in future EU programmes will be subject to the final outcome of the future partnership negotiations.
The Political Declaration between the UK and the EU provides that the Parties will establish general principles, terms and conditions for the United Kingdom's participation in EU programmes, subject to the conditions set out in the corresponding EU instruments, in areas such as education, overseas development and external action, defence capabilities, civil protection and space.
However, the EU has introduced a legal mechanism for the current PEACE and INTERREG programmes for Northern Ireland and the border region to continue.
The Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland acknowledges the EU and UK commitment to the North South PEACE and INTERREG funding programmes agreed under the EU's 2014-2020 Multi-Annual Financial Framework.
EU leaders have also agreed, in the framework of the EU’s 2021-2027 Multi-Annual Financial Framework, to provide substantial funding for a future PEACE PLUS programme in support of peace and reconciliation and of the continuation of North-South cross border cooperation on the island of Ireland.
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